WSU notebook: Cougs target 0-linemen in recruiting

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Washington State quarterback Jeff Tuel is brought down Stanford defensive end Ben Gardner. The Cougars are looking to bolster its offensive line with hopes of protecting its passer better in the future.

PULLMAN - Saturday: WSU at Utah

Time: noon

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Philosophers have long pondered the question, "What came first: The chicken or the egg?"

The college football equivalent to that question is, "What came first: The victories or the top recruits?"

Washington State's long, downward spiral on the gridiron began with poor recruiting during Bill Doba's reign as head coach. Recruiting gradually improved under Paul Wulff, and 15 freshmen have seen action in Mike Leach's first season as coach, including six who started Saturday in a 24-17 loss at No. 19 Stanford.

Leach has stressed the need to recruit bigger and better offensive linemen since he arrived in Pullman. Washington State's O-line shortcomings were highlighted when Stanford recorded 10 quarterback sacks and 15 tackles for losses and held the Cougars to minus-16 yards rushing.

The Cougars rank last in the nation in sacks allowed per game (4.25), rushing yards per game (33.5), rushing attempts per game (20.6) and yards gained per rush (1.6).

Leach said the offensive line is recruiting target No. 1. The Cougars are trying to land five high school O-linemen and two from junior colleges, Leach said.

Cougfan.com, which closely monitors WSU recruiting, reports the Cougars have verbal commitments from two offensive linemen: Cole Madison from Kennedy High in Burien, and Cody O'Connell from Wenatchee High.

Scout.com gives Madison 3 stars, O'Connell 2 stars on a 5-star scale. Scout.com ranks WSU's current group of 15 commits 10th in the Pac-12 and 52nd in the country.

Adding to WSU's recruiting angst is the fact that Puyallup High graduate Joshua Garnett made his first start at offensive guard as a true freshman for Stanford on Saturday. Also, Washington Huskies running back Bishop Sankey — who originally committed to WSU out of Spokane's Gonzaga Prep — ran for 92 yards and two touchdowns Saturday in an upset win over Oregon State.

Shaw might have a point. Despite ranking eighth in passing yards per game (332.1), the Cougars are 103rd in scoring (20.6) and 91st in total offense (365.6) among the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision teams officially recognized by the NCAA.

WSU ranks second with 51.5 pass attempts per game and is tied for first with 15 interceptions. The Cougars are 33rd among the top 34 passing teams in yards gained per pass attempt at 6.45.

WSU season records for most pass attempts and completions should fall, but the Cougars are running behind the record pace for passing yards and passing touchdowns. The infamous 1970 record of 36 interceptions seems safe.

Help is coming

The top-rated recruit committed to WSU, 4-star quarterback Tyler Bruggman of Phoenix, has passed for 2,199 yards, 28 touchdowns and six interceptions in 11 games.

Another WSU verbal commit, Olito Thompson, is the type of big running back (5-10, 210) the Cougars lack. The 3-star recruit ran for 251 yards and three touchdowns in one game this season for Concord (Calif.) High.